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A review by briggamooz
Capture the Crown by Jennifer Estep
4.0
It is simply not fair that I have to wait until 2022 for the next book in this series.
Jennifer Estep just keeps getting better. The first foray into Crown of Shards universe was...alright. Evie and Lucas are fun, you believe wholeheartedly in them and their trials and triumphs, but something was missing. What? I'm not sure. But whatever it was is PRESENT and unleashed in full-force with Capture the Crown. The expansion of the world is on point, the growth of returning characters is logical yet still enjoyably surprising, the pacing is tighter than a Bellonan corset and the relationship between our two leads is ~chef's kiss~.
From the moment Gemma Ripley waltzed onto the page with her faithful companion Grimley in Protect the Prince, I wanted more; and the decision to age her up for this new series works perfectly with the tone set by Crown of Shards. Like her Aunt Evie, she is strong-willed, fiercely loyal and clever, but otherwise she stands on her own as a fully-fleshed out heroine. Defining acts of her childhood serve as a background to the tapestry of Gemma, and while the reader is privileged with some of the knowledge as to who she is, there were still many fun surprises to be had.
And then Leonidas. Sweet, cinnamon roll Leonidas. There is nothing I did not love about this character and the man he's grown into. While Estep uses the events of the Regalia in Crush the King as the jumping off point for the reader's familiarity with our Leo, he quickly moves beyond the terrors of those days and (while I think he'd refuse to admit it) there's a sunny-eyed optimist lurking beneath the many necessary walls he's erected in order to survive in the Mortan court.
Cannot wait to see these two continue their dance in the next book. I need for Gargoyle vs Strix sass fights; and, again, it is not FAIR that I have to wait until 2022.
Jennifer Estep just keeps getting better. The first foray into Crown of Shards universe was...alright. Evie and Lucas are fun, you believe wholeheartedly in them and their trials and triumphs, but something was missing. What? I'm not sure. But whatever it was is PRESENT and unleashed in full-force with Capture the Crown. The expansion of the world is on point, the growth of returning characters is logical yet still enjoyably surprising, the pacing is tighter than a Bellonan corset and the relationship between our two leads is ~chef's kiss~.
From the moment Gemma Ripley waltzed onto the page with her faithful companion Grimley in Protect the Prince, I wanted more; and the decision to age her up for this new series works perfectly with the tone set by Crown of Shards. Like her Aunt Evie, she is strong-willed, fiercely loyal and clever, but otherwise she stands on her own as a fully-fleshed out heroine. Defining acts of her childhood serve as a background to the tapestry of Gemma, and while the reader is privileged with some of the knowledge as to who she is, there were still many fun surprises to be had.
And then Leonidas. Sweet, cinnamon roll Leonidas. There is nothing I did not love about this character and the man he's grown into. While Estep uses the events of the Regalia in Crush the King as the jumping off point for the reader's familiarity with our Leo, he quickly moves beyond the terrors of those days and (while I think he'd refuse to admit it) there's a sunny-eyed optimist lurking beneath the many necessary walls he's erected in order to survive in the Mortan court.
Cannot wait to see these two continue their dance in the next book. I need for Gargoyle vs Strix sass fights; and, again, it is not FAIR that I have to wait until 2022.